Irregardless of the price, I am buying a new computer.

Well, no, not really. Not any time soon, at any rate. But that’s not the topic of this post; the word “irregardless” is.

“That’s not a word!” you cry.

“If it isn’t a word, what is it?” say I. (Idea stolen from the blog post referred to below.)

“OK,” you respond, “it isn’t a real word. It isn’t in the dictionary.”

Actually, it is — whatever “the” dictionary might be. Read this great post about it, requiring only the barest minimum of linguistics, in the Merriam-Webster blog. I’m not sure I need to comment on it, as the anonymous editor says just about everything that needs to be said on this topic and its larger implications. If you’re one of those grumpy cats for whom “irregardless” is offensive, or even not a real word, or even not a word at all, you might rethink your views after reading that post.

Categories: Cats, Linguistics